{"id":2573665,"date":"2026-02-25T17:04:03","date_gmt":"2026-02-25T22:04:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/elon-musk-its-time-to-use-the-talking-filibuster-to-pass-the-save-act\/"},"modified":"2026-02-25T17:08:07","modified_gmt":"2026-02-25T22:08:07","slug":"elon-musk-its-time-to-use-the-talking-filibuster-to-pass-the-save-act","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/elon-musk-its-time-to-use-the-talking-filibuster-to-pass-the-save-act\/","title":{"rendered":"Musk: It&#8217;s Time To Use The Talking Filibuster To Pass SAVE Act"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Felon-musk-its-time-to-use-the-talking-filibuster-to-pass-the-save-act%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2573665&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Conservative figures, including Elon Musk, are urging Senate Majority Leader John Thune to force a vote on the SAVE America Act using a \u201ctalking filibuster\u201d so Democrats would have to speak or allow passage.The bill would require proof of U.S.citizenship and a photo ID for federal elections. Musk argues the talking filibuster peels back cloture abuse by forcing real debate, while critics say the move is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mamdani-calls-nypd-racist-then-backpedals-with-individual-apologies\/\" title=\"Mamdani Calls NYPD Racist, Then Backpedals with Individual Apologies\">political theater aimed<\/a> at advancing a priority without genuine bipartisanship. The piece explains the procedural stakes, noting that a genuine talking filibuster would <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >demand disciplined floor time<\/a> from both parties, unlike the traditional cloture path that often lets the majority claim progress without long speeches. It also traces the history and meaning of the talking filibuster,highlighting reactions from critics like Sean Davis and providing context about the author,Breccan F. Thies, a White House correspondent for The Federalist.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span>Breccan F. Thies \/ The Federalist       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/25\/elon-musk-its-time-to-use-the-talking-filibuster-to-pass-the-save-act\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Elon%20Musk:%20It%E2%80%99s%20Time%20To%20Use%20The%20Talking%20Filibuster%20To%20Pass%20The%20SAVE%20Act&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/25\/elon-musk-its-time-to-use-the-talking-filibuster-to-pass-the-save-act\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Elon%20Musk:%20It%E2%80%99s%20Time%20To%20Use%20The%20Talking%20Filibuster%20To%20Pass%20The%20SAVE%20Act&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/25\/elon-musk-its-time-to-use-the-talking-filibuster-to-pass-the-save-act\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/25\/elon-musk-its-time-to-use-the-talking-filibuster-to-pass-the-save-act\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Elon%20Musk:%20It%E2%80%99s%20Time%20To%20Use%20The%20Talking%20Filibuster%20To%20Pass%20The%20SAVE%20Act&amp;body=%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2026\/02\/25\/elon-musk-its-time-to-use-the-talking-filibuster-to-pass-the-save-act\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>Elon Musk has joined a chorus of conservatives pushing for Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., to force Democrats into a talking filibuster in order to pass the SAVE America Act, which requires proof of U.S. citizenship and photo ID to vote in federal elections.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The filibuster rule is meant to allow senators to present their arguments before a bill is passed. It is NOT intended to require 60 votes to pass anything at all!&rdquo; Musk <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/elonmusk\/status\/2026724553234461068?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a> on social media. &ldquo;STOP THE ABUSE OF THE FILIBUSTER NOW. Either senators must talk or they must pass the bill to SAVE AMERICA!&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-1644780738\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"> <span class=\"hpfi0xOb3acRdU8WQK39j1PtI29uvyZUQCKM4XAzTJI2vdVqYFiwEsOH1YHPZmg\"><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Great news! Now it is time to enforce the talking filibuster. <\/p>\n<p>The filibuster rule is meant to allow senators to present their arguments before a bill is passed. <\/p>\n<p>It is NOT intended to require 60 votes to pass anything at all!<\/p>\n<p>STOP THE ABUSE OF THE FILIBUSTER NOW. <\/p>\n<p>Either&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/8xp1UewexI\">https:\/\/t.co\/8xp1UewexI<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Elon Musk (@elonmusk) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/elonmusk\/status\/2026724553234461068?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 25, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/span> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Musk was responding to a post from Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, who said it is &ldquo;great&rdquo; that Thune decided to force a vote in the Senate on the SAVE America Act. But, Lee pointed out, &ldquo;A vote isn&rsquo;t enough; President Trump and the American people are calling on us to PASS this bill,&rdquo; and &ldquo;for that reason, senators wanting to filibuster it must be required to speak.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The battle in the Senate is a procedural one, but it is the result makes all the difference. On the one hand, Republicans can bring the bill to the floor, essentially symbolically (as the outcomes are <a href=\"https:\/\/chroniclesmagazine.org\/web\/the-talking-filibuster-is-the-anti-nuclear-option\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">almost always<\/a> predetermined), and inevitably lose because there are not 60 votes to reach cloture. On the other hand, they can force Democrats to actually stand and speak for hours, either holding the floor in perpetuity or relenting and allowing the bill to pass with a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/blackburn-introduces-amendments-to-counter-china-and-iran\/\" title=\"Blackburn Introduces Amendments to Counter China and Iran\">simple majority vote<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The &ldquo;talking filibuster&rdquo; is what most Americans think of when they picture a filibuster: former Sen. Strom Thurmond, D-S.C., <a href=\"https:\/\/www.senate.gov\/artandhistory\/history\/resources\/pdf\/Thurmond_filibuster_1957.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">holding the floor<\/a> for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/sections\/thetwo-way\/2013\/03\/07\/173736882\/how-did-strom-thurmond-last-through-his-24-hour-filibuster\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">24 hours and 18 minutes<\/a> in speaking against the Civil Rights Act of 1957. The cloture-based filibuster often allows those in the majority to claim they tried to get something passed, while blaming the minority for nothing ever happening.<\/p>\n<p>As The Federalist CEO Sean Davis said, &ldquo;This is classic failure theater from Thune. He doesn&rsquo;t want to do the work of forcing Democrats to maintain a real filibuster, so he&rsquo;s just going to file cloture on their zombie filibuster, which will fail. Then he can immediately move on to what he really cares about: passing corporate welfare for K Street. Failure theater from do-nothing Republicans should be mocked and condemned, not praised.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\"> <span class=\"AOxoGHan3vStkPlZrBqjc6dUW5y0e8E9fFQ1Km\"><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">This is classic failure theater from Thune. He doesn&rsquo;t want to do the work of forcing Democrats to maintain a real filibuster, so he&rsquo;s just going to file cloture on their zombie filibuster, which will fail. <\/p>\n<p>Then he can immediately move on to what he really cares about: passing&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/O6k1g9CvmG\">https:\/\/t.co\/O6k1g9CvmG<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Sean Davis (@seanmdav) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/seanmdav\/status\/2026688675451417037?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 25, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/span> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The &ldquo;talking filibuster&rdquo; was the norm in the Senate until 1917, as Chronicles Magazine <a href=\"https:\/\/chroniclesmagazine.org\/web\/the-talking-filibuster-is-the-anti-nuclear-option\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">points out<\/a>, when the cloture rule was introduced. However, while the cloture rule became more regularly used, it did not replace the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/what-the-wall-street-journal-gets-wrong-about-the-talking-filibuster\/\" title=\"What WSJ Gets Wrong About The Talking ...\">talking filibuster &#038;mdash<\/a>; which is still a rule that can be invoked.<\/p>\n<p>It would take discipline on the part of both Republicans and Democrats if either side is to win. Democrats would need to make sure they never yielded the floor, because the moment they stop speaking they would lose it. Republicans would need to table amendments offered by Democrats until they are so exhausted they are forced to yield.<\/p>\n<p>With the Senate in a state of gridlock, the talking filibuster appears to be the only way to pass much of the Trump administration&rsquo;s agenda.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      Breccan F. Thies is the White House correspondent for The Federalist. He is a co-recipient of the 2025 Dao Prize for Excellence in Investigative Journalism. As an investigative journalist, he previously covered education and culture issues for the Washington Examiner and Breitbart News. He holds a degree from the University of Virginia and is a 2022 Claremont Institute Publius Fellow. You can follow him on X: @BreccanFThies.<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">Breccan F. Thies<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author-twitter label-sm d-flex align-items-center mt-10\">             <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter me-5\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>             <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Visit on Twitter<\/span>            <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BreccanFThies\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"text-decoration-none\">@BreccanFThies<\/a>           <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/breccan-thies\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/elon-musk\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Elon Musk<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/filibuster\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Filibuster<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/john-thune\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">John Thune<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/noncitizen-voters\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">noncitizen voters<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/save-america-act\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">SAVE America Act<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/talking-filibuster\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">talking filibuster<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/voter-id\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">voter ID<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Musk backs Thune to force a talking filibuster<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":179,"featured_media":2573666,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_4533-scaled.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546,33651],"tags":[10130,4250,34333],"class_list":["post-2573665","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist","category-the-western-journal","tag-filibuster","tag-musk","tag-save-act"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_4533-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2573665","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/179"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2573665"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2573665\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2573669,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2573665\/revisions\/2573669"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2573666"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2573665"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2573665"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2573665"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}